Stan Miastkowski
Experience counts. That's one of the messages that IBM is continually repeating as it gets ready to roll out the next version of OS/2. The company's experience in operating-system development isn't difficult to see with the product that has gone through one of the most extensive beta tests in the history of software development.
The product I tested was named Warp. At press time, the formal name, version number, and pricing of Warp weren't available.
IBM said it would make OS/2 installation much easier through extensive built-in code for identifying the hardware on which users are installing it. The only way the company could test the hundreds of thousands of hardware combinations existing out there in the real world was to have as many users as possible te
st OS/2.
Although IBM declined to discuss the technical details of how Warp identifies hardware, problems with strange hardware combinations were expected, and they quickly cropped up. Three out of four PCs that I tested--starting with an ancient no-name 386/33 with a Tandy CD-ROM drive--failed to load the Warp beta version. I finally got Warp running on a genuine IBM 486/33-based PS/ValuePoint.
IBM technical support quickly released an updated installation file that solved my problems on two of the three machines that wouldn't load Warp. By the time Warp ships, IBM expects to have solved the vast majority of installation problems.
Doing More Windows
Although IBM continues to develop additional versions of OS/2 that incorporate advanced features, such as symmetrical multiprocessing, Warp is a different animal, aimed squarely at the large universe of individual Windows users who want a more advanced operating system than DOS underlying Windows 3.x. Like OS/2 for Windows 2.1, which ha
s been available for nearly a year, Warp integrates your existing Windows installation into the OS/2 environment. This integration allows you to use Windows and its applications in the familiar manner, but with the advantage of using OS/2's preemptive multitasking and linear memory space to ``wall off'' applications from each other. If one crashes, the others keep running.
Unlike OS/2 for Windows 2.1, Warp now works with Windows 3.11 and Windows for Workgroups, and it is compatible with applications written for Microsoft's Win32s API. The person in charge of Warp development, Paul Giangarra, who was also the chief designer of OS/2 2.0, declined to explain how this was done, but he said it was ``simply a job of polishing the code.'' Warp still doesn't work with applications that use Windows VxDs (virtual device drivers), but at the moment that's an extremely small part of the universe of Windows applications.
As a full-fledged 32-bit operating system, OS/2 has developed a reputation for requiring
powerful processors and lots of memory. This is true enough, but in this release IBM has made an effort to produce a product that will run adequately on older processors and systems with 4 MB of RAM.
Giangarra is philosophical about this, saying the 4-MB requirement is ``what the market wants but not what the industry buys.'' He also points out that many major Windows applications require 8 MB of RAM. Although I wasn't able to test Warp on a 4-MB system, its performance on an 8-MB PC is noticeably faster than that of its predecessor.
Giangarra adds that there's no big mystery to making Warp smaller and faster. ``In first releases, you do your best. Later, you go back and shine things up,'' he says. IBM developed automated tools for testing and optimizing Warp code. ``We produced gigabytes of traces and found the places where code wasn't efficient,'' says Giangarra. As a prime example, IBM completely rearranged the all-important code-paging algorithms, under the direction of the person who devel
oped the MVS (IBM's mainframe operating system) pager.
On a Screen Near You
At first glance, the Warp desktop looks nearly identical to that of OS/2 for Windows, but a closer exploration reveals some interesting changes and additions to its look and feel. Besides the 3-D icons (which are nice, but far from essential), IBM has done a great deal of work at making the object-oriented Workplace Shell easier to use. It still requires something of a paradigm shift to use, especially for experienced Windows users. But the more you use it, the more sense it makes.
New and useful are status-sensitive folders icons that appear opened when a folder is opened, and closed when it's closed. You can also choose to close parent folders when you open applications or folders. This makes for a desktop that's much less cluttered. And there's also a pick-up-and-drop option for moving icons, which is essentially a clipboard for icons. Finally, there's the LaunchPad, which is a handy, floating, customizable tool
bar that enables you to set up your favorite folders and applications for single-click access.
Dialog boxes and settings screens hidden behind the Workplace Shell also make a lot of sense. Involved dialog boxes are split into easily accessible categories, and IBM has eliminated some of the confusing techno-speak; for example, you no longer ``migrate'' applications to OS/2; you ``install'' them.
IBM has also made an effort to make life easier for portable computer users. PlayAtWill is a new utility that IBM claims offers full plug-and-play (though not based on the Microsoft/Intel Plug and Play standard) capabilities for PCMCIA card users. Although I wasn't able to test it, IBM claims that you can associate applications with specific PCMCIA cards. For example, plugging in a fax modem card would automatically launch communications software.
Real Applications
Thankfully, IBM has tossed the wimpy and largely useless mini-applications that were shipped with previous versions of OS/2. They
've been replaced by the BonusPak, which includes IBM Works (a miniature suite of 32-bit native OS/2 applications), FaxWorks for OS/2, CompuServe Information Manager for OS/2, Personal Information Manager, Person-to-Person (a simple workgroup-collaboration tool), and an advanced system configuration/testing utility.
At the bottom line, it's obvious that IBM has put a great deal of time and effort into making Warp a highly optimized, easy-to-install, and easy-to-use operating system that offers next-generation power to existing users without requiring them to invest in additional hardware.
With the delay of Windows 4.0, IBM has been handed another chance to take over a chunk of the desktop market. And, interestingly, the dearth of true 32-bit native OS/2 applications seems to have become a minor inconvenience instead of a major shortcoming, especially because of how well OS/2 integrates with existing Windows installations and applications.
Experience counts, and Warp bears all the hallmark
s of an experienced operating system. But, at the bottom line, Warp's success will depend on IBM's making it widely available in the marketplace, especially through having it preinstalled on new hardware. Purchasing prior versions of OS/2, for example, required a determined effort. For Warp to be a success, that has to change.
Illustration: The Workplace Shell for Warp looks similar to that for the prior version. However, in addition to the 3-D icons and LaunchPad (at the bottom of the screen), behind the shell are increased performance and additional Windows compatibility.
Stan Miastkowski is a BYTE consulting editor. He is cofounder and former publisher of the OS/2 Report newsletter and has been an OS/2 user since version 1.0. You can contact him on the Internet or BIX at
stanm@bix.com
or on MCI Mail at 530-9979.
IBM Engages Warp Drive for OS/2
